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The Dutchman has been surrounded by speculation regarding his Arsenal future after he confirmed he did not want to begin talks on a new contract until the summer.

His current deal runs out in the summer of 2013 and Arsene Wenger will be hoping to avoid a repeat of the Samir Nasri situation by keeping his talisman at Emirates Stadium.

“I have been at the club for eight years and I am proud of that,” he told Dutch newspaper De Telegraaf.

“I am a true Gunner. I love this club and that is no secret.”

Those words will be comforting for Arsenal fans, who have been worried when facing the prospect of playing without a man who has already scored 29 goals this season.

Van Persie also appeared calm about the negotiations and would talk things over with Wenger and the Gunners’ hierarchy in the summer.

“After this season I will sit down with the manager and the chairman,” he added. “We will than have a cup of coffee together.”

“There’s no rush, I speak with the manager on a regular basis. But the chairman will be there too at this meeting.”

Van Persie was speaking after a north London derby victory that had eased some of the wounds inflicted by the club’s previous week, which saw them thumped 4-0 in Milan and knocked out of the FA Cup at Sunderland.

In an astonishing comeback from two goals down to win 5-2 against rivals Spurs, Arsenal injected some hope that they may yet qualify for next season’s Champions League.

Van Persie scored the equaliser in the win at Emirates Stadium on Sunday, taking his Premier League tally for this season to 23.